Effects of Sr and Y on microstructure and corrosion resistance of AZ31 magnesium alloy

The effects of Sr and Y with different contents on the microstructure and corrosion resistance of AZ31 alloy were investigated. The results indicate that the addition of Sr can obviously reduce the grain size of AZ31 alloy and transform β-Mg17Al12 phase from continuous network to scattered form. Simultaneously, Al4Sr phase distributed along the boundaries of grains is formed in AZ31-Sr magnesium alloys. The addition of Sr is not as effective as the simultaneous addition of Sr+Y for the refinement of grains, and Al2Y and Al3Y phases are distributed both in intracrystalline and along grain boundaries. The corrosion resistance is improved slightly in AZ31 alloy with simultaneous addition of 0.5%Sr+Y. Due to its smallest corrosion current density and corrosion rate, the corrosion resistance of AZ31-0.5%Sr-1.5%Y magnesium alloy is proved the best.